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After a long weekend camping with our “girls”, I ran in Walmart for some groceries and saw strawberries on sale for $1.49 a pound. They weren’t on my list but I couldn’t pass them up. I then came home and made this decadent dessert (that we don’t need to eat but will). It’s so simple to make something like this that I thought I’d share my recipe. Give it a shot! Add some bananas if you’d like or some blueberries. You can put any fruit in place of the strawberries.

In a glass 4 cup measuring cup or something similar and microwavable (I use a Fire King Jadite batter bowl), combine the pudding and the evaporated milk (3 cups), stir and microwave on high for 5 minutes, stopping in one minute intervals to stir. In the end the pudding should be thickening up. Once the cooking process is over, press plastic wrap onto the top (so it won’t form a “skin”) and refrigerate for an hour.

While the pudding is cooking/cooling, slice the pound cake lengthwise into 3 layers. Spread the strawberry jam evenly between the layers like filling in a cake. Reassemble the pound cake and cut into slices about 3/4″ thick.

In a large bowl or trifle bowl, arrange the cake layers on the bottom to cover as best possible. Top the cake layers with 3/4 of the sugared strawberries. Pour the cooled pudding over the strawberries, then top with the Cool Whip. Arrange the remaining strawberries on top for decoration and refrigerate the whole bowl for 2-24 hours before serving.

Down south, congealed fruit salads are a big thing. Every church social, potluck or holiday meal includes a version of this tasty treat. Each family has their own recipe and each recipe has its own name, but they are all similar and usually contain the following or variations: pudding, Jello, fruit, nuts, KoolWhip, etc. Some have cream cheese, some don’t. In my family, my sister-in-law makes a version she calls “FLUFF”.

The recipe I use came from the “Ask Heloise” section of the newspaper. It’s tasty, sinful and especially refreshing on a hot summer’s afternoon. Considering the high in Birmingham was 106F today, I needed something refreshing, so I whipped up a bowl of this wonderful salad, and thought I’d share this “tried and true” recipe with you.

1 can crushed pineapple in juice

1 can chunk pineapple in juice, or substitute with 1 chopped fresh, really ripe pineapple (I usually have a pineapple around the house, because it’s my favorite fruit, so that’s what I used)

1 cup nuts (I used pecans)

1 cup shredded coconut

1 cup mini marshmallows

1 small box instant pistachio pudding

16oz soft KoolWhip

If using a fresh pineapple, here’s a secret test to see how ripe your fruit is. Try pulling out one of the green leaves atop the pineapple. A pineapple at the perfect stage of ripeness will give up a leaf with little pressure. It should also be a yellow color on the outside and not green between the scales.

In a medium bowl, add the crushed pineapple and chunks with their juice. Sprinkle the pistachio pudding over the pineapple, stir and let it sit for a minute or two. Next add the nuts, coconut and marshmallows and combine. Fold in the softened KoolWhip.

Refrigerate, covered, for at least an hour before serving. How easy is that??? 🙂

In the South, banana pudding is a staple, one I was never really fond of until recently. As the name states, this is not your normal banana pudding recipe. This is rich, creamy, delicious and best of all, requires NO COOKING!

2 bags Pepperidge Farms Chessmen Cookies

6-8 ripe bananas, sliced

2 cups cold milk

1 5oz box instant French vanilla pudding

1 8oz package cream cheese, softened

1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk

1 12oz container frozen whipped topping, thawed

Line the bottom of a 13×9 by 2” deep dish with 1 bag of cookies and layer bananas on top (or you can get “fancy” with a trifle bowl like the pic).

In a bowl, combine the milk and pudding mix and blend well with a handheld electric mixer. Using another bowl, combine the cream cheese and condensed milk and mix until smooth. Fold the whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture. Add the cream cheese mixture to the pudding mix and stir until well blended. Pour the mixture over the cookies and bananas and cover with remaining bag of cookies. Refrigerate until ready to serve.